


First Day of Yule

by TheHoardingPuffin



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Legends: Thrawn Trilogy - Timothy Zahn
Genre: Christmas, Christmas Presents, Family Fluff, Luke Skywalker is determined to change that, Mara Jade is a bit antisocial and awkward, Multi, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-29
Updated: 2019-11-29
Packaged: 2021-02-26 02:47:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,100
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21606274
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheHoardingPuffin/pseuds/TheHoardingPuffin
Summary: The Organas used to start yule festivities by gifting everyone a small something. Leia carries the tradition on in her new family. Luke has decided to get Mara into it as well. Also, Mara isn’t good with children – or family – or social interactions that don’t involve assassinations.
Relationships: Leia Organa/Han Solo, Mara Jade/Luke Skywalker
Comments: 4
Kudos: 40





	First Day of Yule

**Author's Note:**

> Hey there!  
> Tomorrow is the first of December, so here's a Christmas-themed (or well, Yule - Christianity is not an aspect of Star Wars religions as far as I know) Star Wars Oneshot.  
> Oh, by the way, this is set a few years after the third Thrawn-trilogy-book, and Jaina and Jacen are about four or five years old. Baby Anakin II isn't born yet (yeah, I'm bending timelines and stuff, also no Callista because reasons)...
> 
> Hope you like it! <3  
> Happy first Advent sunday!

It had always been a tradition with the Organa family to start of the month of yule festivities with gifts, same as it ended with gifts. Luke had needed a bit of time to understand this – Yule was no concept on Tatooine, after all – but he had come to like this tradition that his sister was determined to carry on. She started with it the year after she had gotten married to Han, and they hadn’t stopped since. The gifts at the beginning of the month were usually small and often useful in nature – mechanical parts, holobooks, new gloves, that sort of thing. Still, people put thought into the gifts, something that still amazed Luke year after year. It was such a small but genuine gesture to give someone a small but meaningful gift.

Mara, like it was her nature, was sceptical. She had difficulties understanding that gifts didn’t come with a prize, that they didn’t require a repayment. Having been Palpatine’s right hand for so long, and then living amongst smugglers for another while, whilst having an evil Jedi clone talk in her head and order her around – all of that took its toll, apparently. Yule gifts of course weren’t the only thing Mara was sceptical about, and there was no way to change this in a few days, or with just one conversation, but Luke was patient and more than willing to assist her in getting better in many concerns, not just this one.

That meant, of course, that he dragged her along when he went on the hunt for some good yule-start-gifts for his nephew and his niece. And with Luke being a perfectionist, this took a long while. Longer than what Mara was willing to tolerate.

“We have been staring at the same seven stuffed animals for exactly 47 minutes now”, she complained, glancing at her wrist-chrono. “I really don’t understand why this is such a difficulty for you. They’re all basically the same!”

Luke decided that it was no use to argue – even though it made a difference. Obviously. A stuffed loth-kitten, a stuffed batha, a stuffed goba-fish and a stuffed tauntaun were very different things.

“You need two gifts for the twins”, Mara continued. “It’s simple. Just grab two and let us go.”

“Help me decide”, Luke answered. Mara rolled her eyes. “Seriously?”

“Please.” Luke gave her a patient smile – one that he knew drove Mara crazy. It annoyed her just the right amount not to snap, he had learned that soon. “Do it for me.”

Mara crossed her arms. “Why would I ever do anything for you, Skywalker?”

“Because you are a nice, friendly person?”

Mara sighed, then picked up two small stuffed toys that sat right in the back of the shelf. One was purple, the other one green.

“These”, she said. “Can we leave now.”

Luke took a look at the toys. “Sure?”

“Obviously.” Mara held up the two stuffed animals. “You told me to help you decide, I did. Let’s leave.”

Luke smiled and took the toys. “Very well.”

“Hello Leia. Happy Yule.”

Luke greeted his sister with a kiss on the cheek, her husband with a short hug.

“Luke.” Leia smiled at him, then turned towards his companion. “Mara, how nice to see you.”

“I…” Mara sighed. “Thank you for the invitation.”

“I’ve said it before, you are always welcome here.” Leia turned around and led them into the back part of the quarters.

“Uncle Luke!”, a pair of bright voices called, then two small children came running and hugged Luke’s legs.

“Jaina, Jacen!” Luke laughed. “How are you?”

“Did you get us a gift?”, Jacen asked.

Luke took his time to kneel down in front of the two, and sighed heavily. “I am so sorry”, he said. “I don’t have anything for you.”

Jaina and Jaces started at him, brown eyes wide with childish shock. Luke grinned. “Mara has your gifts.”

Immediately, the two children ran to Mara, hugged her legs and begged for their gifts. Mara looked at Luke in a way that said _You are a traitor and I will get revenge for this!_

“What do you have for us, Aunty Mara?”, Jaina asked and pulled on Mara’s wide white sleeve. “What is it?”

Mara looked at Luke as if for help, then followed his example, kneeled down and pulled two small wrapped gifts out of her pouch. She handed one of them to Jacen, the other one to Jaina. Both of them ripped the paper open and started squealing in joy.

“Dwinugins!”, Jacen cheered and held his purple stuffed star dragon into the air.

“Duinuogwuins“, Mara corrected, but a small smile crept onto his face. “I take it you like them?”

“They’re great!” Jaina hugged her green star dragon tightly – then gave Mara a similarly tight hug. “I love it! Thank you!”

Mara awkwardly patted Jaina’s back and stared at Luke as if to say _Help me! Now!_

Luke just grinned and turned towards Han and Leia to give them their gifts – a glass sphere that had an aldaraanian landscape inside for his sister and a new spare part for the _Falcon_ for Han. It would pair as a gift for Chewie as well. The _Falcon_ was their shared property after all.

“So you got Mara out of her shell?”, Leia asked in a hushed voice. “How did you do that?”

“I annoyed her into it.” Luke shrugged. “Worth it. Even though she’ll kick my butt for it when we spar again.”

Han snorted, and Leia laughed before taking two gifts wrapped in yellow fabric out of a drawer. She handed one to Luke and the other one to Mara.

“For me?”, Mara asked in disbelief. Leia smiled. “Of course. You’re family now, even if you don’t want it.”

Mara said nothing and unwrapped her gift. It was a small, purple crystal.

“In case you want to build your own”, Leia said, gesturing at the old Skywalker lightsabre that hung from Mara’s belt – the weapon that C’baoth had stolen and that Luke had gifted to Mara after they had killed the Jedi clone. It was a good weapon, but it wasn’t Mara’s.

The redhead smiled, a genuine thankful smile. Luke pretended to be too busy with his own gift – a new wristcom, he had lost his a few weeks ago – to see it. But he did see, of course he did. Maybe it wouldn’t be as difficult as he had thought to get Mara to trust them. Yule was a good time to get closer with the people that were important to you after all.


End file.
